What did the survival of the regime depend upon? What was the human cost of this survival?

There are “belligerent slogans” painted on the walls of the city, one of which causes Marjane to think of a graphic image of a dead man: “To die a martyr is to inject blood into the veins of society.” Marjane reflects that the regime depends on the war to retain its political control of the country. A million people lose their lives in the war. The regime becomes more repressive and seeks to stop “the enemy within” by arresting and executing those that defy its rule.